I got my mind set on you

The 80s were not kind to famed artists. It wasn't the decade of decadence, nor was is the decade of excess. It was the decade of Mullets. Let the party in the back just brush the shoulders, or tango with the person's legs; the mullet was there to stay. Who made the fashion statement sense to get rid of it in the 90s? Where'd it go in 1996? Oh yea, Billy Ray Cyrus and the Beastie Boys (Not that I'm complaining about Billy Ray ^_^). Regardless, the mullet stayed around for a bit, and claimed the life of many of its wearers. However, this post is not about the hairstyle.

It's about George "The Quiet One" Harrison.

Nine years ago, tonight, we heard on the 5 o'clock news that Harrison passed away in his home; from of all things, cancer. He had an off again, on again battle with it for a while. If memory serves right, his health really didn't make headlines until late in 2000, and then he passed in 2001.

Like a lot of folks who were places when a major celebrity passes, I remember where I was and what I was doing that night. I was home for the weekend from school. I had introduced a couple of friends to each other the previous month, so they figured they wanted to meet. So I brought the guy to my house, and then we proceeded to go across town to the girl's place. After the few second awkwardness, they said they'd be fine by themselves, if I wanted to come back later; they'd rather aquaint themselves with out me. Instead of driving home, I went to another friend's house, who happened to live 3 doors away. We were hanging out, watching TV and playing on the internet when the news came on that Harrison died. It was almost like "this is a joke, right?" because it was sudden. He was on the road to health and didn't have any set backs. But as the new cast went on, the more in depth the story went - from a 30 second explanation to a full couple minutes. I couldn't beleive it because he was my favourite Beatle.

I know might say that John or Macca was better, maybe even Ringo, but to me George was the bees knees. I really like the music he put out. I see the political points that John tried to make, as well as the poppy / quirky songs Macca did, but Ringo is best served behind a kit and George deserved better then being the one left behind. The Quiet Beatle wasn't in your face with his verses, nor was anything outlandish. It was more take it as it is, but mixed in some spirituality. Not that I'm spiritual, mind you. But I got it; I understood it.

So after talking to my friend about Harrison and how it turned to be a sad day, the guy friend called me, saying he was ready to go home. So I drove the 3 houses back, picked him up, and we were off. He had fun and I told him about Mr Harrison. The kid had no idea who the artist was to begin with, so I didn't have to do alot of talking - he showed no interest.

At any rate, George is a wonderful artist and great contributor to modern music. He is surely missed and I thank him for all the music he's done... from working with the Liverpool boys that we all know, to his solo albums, as well as working with one of the best super groups of all times - The Travelling Wilburys. Another artist from that group that I admire will have his RIP moment coming up next week - Roy "The Boy" Orbison. Rest in peace, gentlemen... you're truly missed.

"10 Favorite George Harrison Covers" (brought to you by AOL Media / Spinner) (check out the new Santana is up, as well as Bowie's version of Try Some, Buy Some from 2003)